Emergency Sump Pumps in Chicago Save Basements from Summer Storms
Everybody everywhere talks about the weather on a regular basis but, for those who live in Chicago, the weather is more than a topic of conversation.
Here in the City of Broad Shoulders weather impacts our way of life, no matter what the season. Winter? Heavy snow, frigid temperatures and howling winds. Spring and fall? What are they? Summer? Heat, humidity and thunderstorms. Lots of thunderstorms.
When those summer thunderstorms strike it’s not uncommon for several inches of rain to fall in a very short time and for Chicago’s antiquated power grid to fail, leaving homeowners wet and in the dark.
Of course, heavy rain and no power can be a deadly combination for Chicago basements when sump pumps stop working just when they’re needed the most. That’s when an emergency sump pump, also known as a backup, can save a basement.
Emergency Sump Pumps – a Chicago Necessity
A primary sump pump has been described as the heart of a basement waterproofing system and it’s an apt analogy even if it serves a different purpose than the body’s main pump.
When heavy rains saturate soil outside a home’s foundation, the water that would otherwise seep into the basement is instead collected by drain tile, either interior or exterior, and channeled to a sump basin. The sump pump then pumps it to a discharge line, preventing it from flooding the basement floor.
When a power failure causes the sump pump to stop operating, the sump basin quickly floods and water flows all over the basement floor. Preventing this is the job of an emergency sump pump.
There are three basic types of emergency sump pump, all designed to step in when the primary pump fails. A battery-only backup sump pump is great for power failures, making use of a powerful, long-lasting battery to keep the emergency pump running. An AC/DC backup sump pump will not only provide assistance during power failures but its ability to run on household current also enables it to step in when the primary pump suffers a mechanical problem or failure.
The most versatile and useful of the emergency sump pumps is the dual-power, dual-pump version. Installed in place of a primary pump, this version relies on household current to operate both pumps alternately on a regular basis, with one stepping in if the other has a mechanical failure. A battery backup system enables the pump to keep running through a power failure.
In the absence of an emergency sump pump, a Chicago homeowner is taking a substantial risk of water damage to the basement, particularly if it is finished. Even in the best of circumstances, heavy summer thunderstorms increase the likelihood of basement seepage because the primary sump pump can be overwhelmed by the volume. Throw in the fairly common power failures and it becomes a disaster when the rain forces water into the basement and there’s no way of pumping it out until power is restored.
A competent basement waterproofing contractor can recommend and install an emergency sump pump that will keep Chicago basements dry during even the most severe of summer thunderstorms. At U.S. Waterproofing, we offer our customers the powerful and effective BOSS line of emergency sump pumps that includes a BOSS 2100 battery backup sump pump, BOSS 3000 dual power backup sump pump and the BOSS 3000 Deluxe, a dual-power, dual-pump system. Why not ask for our free advice on keeping your basement dry this summer?
If you’d like to know more about emergency sump pumps, please post your questions in the Comments box below.
